How far is what you expect from reality?

And how much is that distance getting in the way of living?

*Note: Due to a comical number of technical issues, this week’s newsletter was written on a phone by the Ayun river in Bali, texted to LA, then posted as a favor by someone who could use my password, but had never used Substack (thank you, Bonnie!)…so…please forgive the janky nature of this week’s edition but by God, we tried really hard to get this to you!!!!*

Hello from Bali where I’m currently writing to you from a treehouse overlooking the  Auyun river. Tropical rain is pouring down on the tops of the trees - breaking the extreme heat with torrential force.  

Sounds pretty sexy, huh? Well, let me paint you the rest of the picture: Bali doesn’t like me.

Night one I couldn’t sleep due to a man violently vomiting in the hotel room next door #yolo. Any appointment I make ends up being at the wrong time, or when something else magical is happening, leaving me in a permanent state of fomo. 

And yesterday my computer just flat out stopped working. I’ve never had that happen before.

As a writer and business person who planned to be both a writer and business person on this trip (and not take vacation) the loss of my computer…is not fun and almost embarrasses me. I take my work (too) seriously and don’t want to let anyone down. Which includes YOU because I can only write this week’s newsletter in my iPhone’s notes section. Please forgive typos, formatting, and spelling! Btw, please forgive those things always.

So this week, I thought…what about prompts for when things go wrong? For when the the “dream trip to Bali,” feels 25% doomed? For when your boyfriend reads your journal on DAY ONE of your romantic vacation to Paris? What about we journal about the not-so-picturesque?

Next week I should have a computer again (pray to the Apple gods with me).

Thanks for hanging in there with me! Apologies again that this week is a little dicey!

Monday

• Describe a time when you wanted a trip, party, or experience to go “perfectly,” but when you seemed to be passenger on the struggle bus.

• Were you able to laugh? Can you laugh now? 

• What did you learn about yourself?

Tuesday

• How wedded to expectations are you? 

• How much does real reality need to synch up with your virtual/imagined reality in order for you to be happy?

• How do you catch yourself when you get lost in how things “should be?”

Wednesday 

• In your everyday life, do you tend to focus on “What’s wrong?” Or “What’s right?”

• If you tend towards “What’s wrong,” write a description of recent wrong and acknowledge the right.

• If you tends towards “What’s right,” write a description of a recent right and acknowledge the wrong.